The Institute for Computing in Research Joins Conservancy!

[Deb Nicholson]

URL: https://sfconservancy.org/news/2020/jul/21/ICRjoins/

Program Uses Software Freedom and Mentorship to Bridge Inequities in
Scientific Research

Conservancy is proud to welcome in a new member project that both fills
in a critical opportunity gap for young scientists and introduces the
next generation of researchers to essential free software tools. The
[Institute for Computing in Research](https://computinginresearch.org/)
 runs a mentoring program that trains students finishing 10th, 11th and
12th grade to do rigorous scientific research using free software. This
year's round of internships began last week with ten students and,
while based in New Mexico, is fully remote for 2020.

The Institute's mentorship program address a significant problem:
almost all the prestigious research opportunities for youth go to
students from privileged families who have connections to laboratories
and universities. The Institute recruits a diverse group of northern
New Mexico students, offers them a stipend, and pairs them with world-
class volunteer mentors. The Institute's mission fits in well with our
existing commitments to creating paid opportunities to learn free
software via Outreachy as well as our strategic support of great free
software tools for researchers and academics, including Xapian, Racket,
MicroBlocks and Common Workflow Language. Students who leave the
Institute's annual mentoring program will leave with critical
experience, an expanded professional network, as well as a whole suite
of free software tooling that they can continue to use as they launch
their research careers.

Institute director Rhonda Crespo commented, "We are excited to provide
this opportunity and exposure to career paths in scientific research
for our students. Partnering with Conservancy allows us to not only to
focus on making sure that the program and the kids' experiences with
scientific research and free software tools are positive and inspiring,
but it also allows us to explore expanding the program beyond New
Mexico in the coming years."

Co-founder Mark Galassi, an astrophysicist at Los Alamos National
Laboratory and member of Software Freedom Conservancy's Board of
Directors, emphasizes two areas in which the connection to Conservancy
is a great fit, "Scientific research was the soil in which software
freedom grew, and the Institute's mission is deeply rooted in software
freedom." Speaking about his inspiration for the project, he added
"While we select students for merit, we have spent years developing a
pipeline by teaching math and computer programming, recruiting from
northern New Mexico's fantastically diverse pool of motivated
youngsters. The results have gone beyond our hopes, and Conservancy's
expertise in running Outreachy had already inspired our model."

Karen Sandler, Conservancy's Executive Director added, "Providing
opportunities for young scientists while teaching them how important
software freedom is for research and data analysis is incredibly
important. We're so proud Conservancy can have a role in leveling the
playing field for these students and can't wait to help the program
grow."


About The Institute for Computing in Research
The Institute for Computing in Research runs a mentoring program that
trains students finishing 10th, 11th and 12th grade to do rigorous
scientific research using free software. The Institute recruits
students who might not otherwise have access to scientific
apprenticeships, offers them a stipend and pairs them with volunteer
mentors who train them to use free software operating systems and
research tools.

About Conservancy
Conservancy is a resourceful, non-profit organization dedicated to
helping people take control of their computing experience by growing
the software freedom movement, supporting community-driven alternatives
to proprietary software and defending free software builders with
practical initiatives. Conservancy believes that the future of software
should be for everyone. 




-- 
Deb Nicholson <deb at sfconservancy.org>
Software Freedom Conservancy